Another Person, This Time In Ireland, Denies Serving On Sport Institute's Board

Just like Alan Hassenfeld, the former CEO of Hasbro Inc., and Robert Fiondella, former CEO of The Phoenix Cos., Michael Healy, an elderly man from Ireland, says he never served on the Institute for International Sport's board of directors, despite his name's appearance on official documents.

Healy is listed as chairman of the nonprofit institute's board of directors. But on Thursday, he denied that he ever served on the board.

"I am not, nor have I ever been, the chairperson of the Institute for International Sport," Healy said in a statement sent to The Courant by email Thursday. "Although I am listed on the institute's website as a 'director,' I attended meetings of what I believed to be an informal advisory body."

He also said he never made any of the statements attributed to him in institute press releases.

"I am not, nor have I ever been, a spokesperson for the Institute for International Sport. Searching the Internet, I have discovered that two statements were made in my name concerning the Institute. These statements were false and were made without my knowledge, without my participation, and without my consent."

The institute is a nonprofit organization led by Daniel Doyle Jr., a West Hartford resident. It runs programs for teenagers around the world, such as last year's World Scholar-Athlete Games and World Youth Peace Summit at the University of Hartford, and is based at the University of Rhode Island.

The organization is dealing with debt, failed real estate ventures, a government audit over its use of a grant and an investigation by Rhode Island State Police. It was supposed to hold a peace symposium at Kingswood Oxford School in West Hartford next week, but the event has been postponed.

A 2010 annual report filed by the institute with the Rhode Island secretary of state's office in February 2011 lists Healy as an institute board member. A 2011 annual report filed with the same office this past December lists Healy as board president.

The RDW Group, a Rhode Island public relations firm owned by Michael Doyle, Daniel Doyle's brother, said Thursday the institute had no comment.

The institute has held programs in Ireland since 1987, but it's unclear how Healy and Daniel Doyle know each other. Healy was not available for comment beyond his emailed statement.

Among the programs in Ireland was Sports Corps, a program in which volunteers helped disadvantaged children and children with disabilities through sports initiatives. Another institute program, Belfast United, was a sports program that brought together Protestant and Catholic children in Northern Ireland. That program eventually led to the Ireland Scholar-Athlete Games.

In addition to being on the official documents filed with Rhode Island, Healy's name was prominent in at least two press releases issued by the RDW Group.

On Feb. 13, the firm released a statement quoting Healy and referring to him as board chairman. The press release was about the institute's decision to leave Rhode Island this coming fall. Patti Doyle, Daniel Doyle's sister-in-law and an RDW executive, emailed the release to the media.

A few days later, another press release was issued by Beth Bailey, an RDW staff member. That statement served as the institute's reaction to an audit conducted by Rhode Island's interim state auditor. The entire release was a statement attributed to Healy.

"It does appear to be an error and it was the information that we were provided with at the time," Bailey said in an email Thursday.

In February, Hassenfeld said he never served on the institute's board. Hassenfeld, however, is listed as the board's chairman on both the institute's 2009 and 2010 annual reports. He is no longer listed as a member of the board.

Hassenfeld, who has financially backed the nonprofit for years, also said that he never signed the 2009 annual report despite the fact that his signature is on the document.

A press release issued at the time by the RDW Group acknowledged that the signature was not Hassenfeld's. The release said Hassenfeld never served on the board, that Daniel Doyle had nothing to do with the document and that the document would have been handled on a staff level.

Fiondella was listed on federal tax forms as being on the board at least from 2003 to 2008. When asked in February, Fiondella said he was never on the board and didn't know his name was on the forms.